Temu’s business model is here to stay - FT中文网
登录×
电子邮件/用户名
密码
记住我
请输入邮箱和密码进行绑定操作:
请输入手机号码,通过短信验证(目前仅支持中国大陆地区的手机号):
请您阅读我们的用户注册协议隐私权保护政策,点击下方按钮即视为您接受。
FT商学院

Temu’s business model is here to stay

Chinese online store does not need a tax quirk to be a big threat to bricks-and-mortar retailers

American consumers have become used to buying T-shirts, plushies and other knick-knacks from the likes of Temu and Shein at rock-bottom prices. Whether they knew it or not, their bargains were partly the result of an old tax loophole that is now being taken away. Fortunately for them, the future of online binge-buying remains cheap, if a little less cheerful.

President Donald Trump’s crackdown on the “de minimis rule” — which allows overseas packages valued at $800 or less to enter the US tax-free as long as they are sent directly to individuals — means that a $10 mini skirt, dinner-plate set or inflatable hamburger outfit will now be subject to normal import taxes as well as the extra 10 per cent tariff that Trump has levied on all imports from China.

Temu, in particular, has been preparing for this day. The online store, part of Chinese internet group PDD, has been growing strongly. Bernstein Research reckons its global gross merchandise value — the total of all goods sold — jumped from $17bn in 2023 to more than $50bn last year. The figure could double to $97bn by 2026, according to Goldman Sachs.

It has also diversified geographically — limiting the impact of tax loophole closures. The US accounts for less than half of Temu’s global GMV, compared with 100 per cent three years ago, when the app first launched.

Meanwhile, Temu has moved away from its “direct from China factory floors” consignment business model. It has recruited vendors who already have goods in US and European warehouses and simply use Temu as a shop window. Goods sold under this semi-consignment model, in which vendors handle their own shipping and delivery logistics, were already imported in bulk, so didn’t benefit from the de-minimis perk. Temu competes with Amazon for their business, with lower and fewer fees.

This strategic shift leaves Temu less reliant on China-based merchants selling small lots of merchandise overseas. Indeed, semi consignment vendors now account for about a quarter of Temu’s US GMV, says Goldman. The adoption of this model in other countries means only 20 per cent of Temu’s global GMV is exposed to potential changes in the de minimis provision, added Bernstein.

Like Shein, which is unlisted but considering a London initial public offering, Temu doesn’t need a tax quirk to be a big threat to bricks-and-mortar retailers. Trump’s trade war is expected to drive prices for everything from avocados to energy higher — which means the “trading down” trend could get a new fillip. De minimis might describe these retailers’ prices, but the businesses themselves are anything but.

pan.yuk@ft.com

版权声明:本文版权归FT中文网所有,未经允许任何单位或个人不得转载,复制或以任何其他方式使用本文全部或部分,侵权必究。

一周展望:美英日利率变动前景

“房间里的大象”是美国总统特朗普的关税政策和美国破坏西方安全联盟所带来的不确定性。

德意志交易所CEO:欧洲需要“大变革”来提振投资

斯特凡•莱特纳在接受FT采访时表示,欧盟应利用投资者随着关税担忧加剧从美国转向欧洲市场的机会。

从新冠到今天:改变我们货币的五年

随着首次封锁纪念日的临近,通货膨胀和市场波动已成为金融生活的常态。

卡普兰如何成为扎克伯格最信任的政治掮客

Meta新晋升的全球事务负责人策划了这家社交媒体巨头向特朗普的转向。

Adnoc首席执行官贾贝尔:‘是时候让能源再次伟大了了’

石油公司总裁兼COP28主席谈特朗普时代对其行业的影响——以及成为“气候现实主义者”的意义。

特朗普混乱的经济议程

白宫错综复杂的激进政策正在削弱人们对美国的信心。
设置字号×
最小
较小
默认
较大
最大
分享×